Love doesn't matter in the arena
by Invisibleauthor
Summary: A girl from district 8 loves a boy from district 10. What happens if the capital finds out about their forbidden love? When they are both thrown into the Hunger Games, they find out that more then their lives are at stake.
1. The reaping

Chapter 1- the reaping

It was that time of year again. I hadn't been able to sleep because of the dread that one of my brothers or sisters could be picked for the 59th games. I have 11 little children with another one on the way who I have to look after and it's very hard to keep everyone fed but still would never be happy to have one less mouth to feed if it meant losing them to such a tragic sport. Fortunately, we are not as poor as other families and don't need Tesserae so none of our names have gone in more than what our age cost us. Still, I feared for Sammy, Kim, Paige, Brianna, Reed and especially Charlie who just turned 12 last week. Next year I will have to worry about Innis when she joins the list of who's next to be slaughtered out of my brothers and sisters.

I gently place little Ali down in her coat and tiptoe around the dark house, only lit dimly by the rising sun. It is unusually quite this morning, normally it would be bustling with the sounds of those getting ready for a day of work. My mother and father are normally up by now, putting on their factory jumpsuits and my aunty would be hurrying around getting the children ready for school. My grandmother would already be at work in her office where she sits around all day being pampered; being the mayor gets you that. However, today is the reaping and there would be no working today, only sadness.

I nearly choked on the grief that I knew would come. I knew most of the people in district 8 by name. My friends and family were all around here. We all grew up together and every year at this time is a time for mourning.

I had to see Kinlay before the reaping started at 11:00. I ran through the empty streets and tried to dodge the raindrops that poured down from the dark clouds that mimicked the sorrow felt by all district 8 citizens. A smile, unusual to see on such a day, appeared on my face as I saw a figure waiting at the fence. A heard a low hum emanating from the live wire and made sure to not touch it. "So you have finally arrived," Kinlay greets me with a sly grin.

I rolled my eyes before stopping to gaze upon his face. My lip trembled a little before I forced it to stop. "What if you get picked this year?" I whisper. Both our smiles had faced into something much darker.

"I'll hide somewhere else; maybe I'll go to district 6."

"I'm sure Burien will take you in."

"What about if you get picked, Idding?"

"I can't run away like you. I have family. I'll just have to go." I wasn't even worried about myself going. I would do anything for my family.

After a long silence Kinlay say, "I love you, you know."

"You know I love you too," I reply, sadness tinting my voice. I wished so much that there was no electric fence between us. I longed for Kinlay to hold me right now and sooth me and tell me it would all end up ok and that we wouldn't be separated and my family would be ok. I decided to change the topic from this dreary tone to something more interesting, the last thing I needed was to feel worse then I already was. "So how is everything in district 10?" I ask.

"Same old, same old. I got some new livestock from the neighbours though."

I smiled at that. The new cows would just be little baby calves. Once he bought one of his babies to show me. It reminded me of little Ali.

"How's the baby?" he asked cautiously. It was always a bit of a dangerous topic for us to get onto.

"I haven't seen Kyle for weeks. He always says he's busy at the factory and can't help with little Ali."

"He's a jerk, you know that right? If I was the baby's father I would be there all the time!" Kinlay says with such passion it's startling.

"I wish you were her father, I really mean that."

"Your arranged marriages in district 8 are so stupid."

"It's only because we're richer than the others and my grandmother couldn't afford for me to marry someone poor. And we're not married yet."

"I still can't believe he got you pregnant."

"I didn't really have a choice."

"I wish I could protect you from him."

I smile weakly at his last statement.

"Idding, I got you something," Kinlay said reaching into his pocket.

"Really?" I asked a little confused.

He tossed me a golden ring with both our districts symbols engraved beautifully upon it. I cried when I saw it.

"Will you be mine?" He asked, getting down on one knee. I screamed for joy and giggled excitedly. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Of course yes!"

I heard a loud clanging noise, the hours warning until the reaping begins. I blow a kiss goodbye to Kinlay and start jogging back home.

When I walk in the door my mother quickly embraces me in a tight hug. She's weeping and the rest of my family is standing around me looking equally as worried.

"Where have you been?" My mother screams at me. I felt tears well up in my eyes as I whimper that I went out for a jog. This seemed to relax her a bit and she let me go to my room to get ready. I hated scaring my family, especially when they're already so upset by the reaping.

I see my long black gown waiting for me on my chair. I quickly jump into it and tie up my straight black hair in a graceful bun. I surround my eyes with black and colour in my lips with a deep red. Every year I made my own personal protest against the games by wearing similar clothing of what one would wear to a funeral.

I turn to start heading to the square when I see Kyle waiting in my door way. A feeling of dread fills my stomach as his fat hands reach out to grab my shoulders. He plants his puffy lips upon me and a wrinkle my nose in disgust, a fake smile is plastered on my face though. His brown hair was slicked back with more gel then I had ever seen in my life. He wore the white peacekeepers uniform and the badge to show that he was the head of them. He was rich and that was all my family cared about. He whispered good luck in my ear and I left the room with shivers running down my spine. I covered my face with a black veil after kissing Ali gently on the fore head leaving a bright red mark from my lipstick.

My brothers and sisters who were eligible for the games followed me out into the square and we all registered ourselves. I found my friend Eli waiting for me and I joined her in the massive crowd. She decided to go all black this year as well with the only exception being her blonde hair which she refused to dye because that meant succumbing to the Capitals luxuries.

Within a few minutes everyone was gathered and ready to start. A short clip about the Capital and all its glory and might was showed upon the giant plasma screens. I closed my eyes and refused to watch any of it, thankfully I was out of sight by any of the peacekeepers.

Finally, it was time to draw out the names. A woman named Magdalena Gold stepped up to the podium with her bright green hair that grew down to her knees flying around in the wind. Her skin was as blue as the ocean and her gold patterns that were carved all over her skin glistened in the sunlight. She always makes a point to wear a lot of gold just because of her last name. She is by far, the stupidest person I have ever known.

"Ok everyone. I see we are all super excited this year. Let's put a twist on things shall we? Let's go with the young gentlemen first," she trills with her stupid Capital voice. She dips her hand into a glass ball and picks out a name. Everybody holds their breath as the slip of paper is slowly opened. I grab hold of my brother, Charlie's hand. I bit my lip and prayed he wouldn't be chosen, he was so young.

"Fhez Lukas," Magdalena called out cheerfully. I sighed in relief.

Fhez was strong and hardworking but he was violent and would have no trouble winning the games. He came roaring onto the stage with delight. He didn't believe in volunteering but he said he always wanted to be picked so he could show his strength for what it really was. I thought he was crazy for wanting this upon himself.

She then put her hand into the girl's bowl and panic arose in me once again. This time I grabbed Eli's hand. I couldn't bear to lose my best friend or my family. I concluded that I would volunteer if that ever happened. I am the oldest, I should go.

Magdalena took her time picking out the female tribute. My grip grew tighter and tighter upon my best friend's hand. She yelped a little as my nails dug into her hand. I thought of Kinlay and forced myself to try to relax, it would be fine.

"Idding Cherrie," Magdalena called out. Fear and terror exploded form me as I let out the most gut wrenching, ear piercing scream imaginable. I shook my head furiously. I didn't want my family or friends to die but I never thought this would happen to me. I couldn't believe that moments ago I was thinking about volunteering. Peacekeepers quickly came to drag me up onto the stage. I kicked and yelled as they threw me onto the hard wooden floor next to Magdalena who looked extremely startled by my reaction. I wept as Magdalena tried to regain control of the situation.

"Somebody's very excited," she laughs nervously. There was silence throughout the crowd. Sometimes I wondered if other district's reaping's were like this. The ceremony ends and the peacekeepers drag me away into the Justice building. Once inside, full hysteria comes out. I kick the peacekeepers as hard as I could but they kept running toward some. More burst in through the door and I spit wild insults at them. I am mad, in more than one way now. Everything inside me crumbled as I thought of the nightmares that were before me. I didn't think I could kill anyone before today but my reaping had shattered a lot of the ethnics planted inside of me.

When the peacekeepers finally regain control of me I am granted to have a few visitors. Unfortunately I have wasted limited time I had to see them. I thought about Kinlay and how I would never see him again; never even get to kiss him. I was still whimpering when my family walked in. All of the children were crying but I doubted the younger ones even understood what the hunger games really meant. We didn't talk much. My mother handed little Ali to me and that made me cry even harder. I would never get to see my precious little girl grow up. I quickly wrote a letter to her and placed it in her blankets. I told my mother to give it to her once she turns 12 if I don't come back. She nodded as tears streamed down her small face. My next visitor was Eli. We cried a lot and hugged but we couldn't bear to say good bye. I was out of time for visitors and I had to be held back from following Eli out the door.

I boarded the train soon after and prepared myself for the trip. I expected horrid little cages and bowls of food and water but instead they gave us lavish coaches filled with things you couldn't have imagined before. I found myself actually getting excited for the train trip. I knew the next stop was district 6 and district 7 would already be on board the train. We were the second stop. I always wanted to see the other districts because they must be so different to us considering what they all specialise in. District 8 is filled with smoke and exhaust fumes. The air is stale and the water's worse. The only grass I had ever seen was over the fence in district 10.

When we pulled into district 6, we were surrounded by other trains. There was metal everywhere and even more smoke then in district 8. I remembered that district 6 was in charge of transportation. I turned to call over the others to take a look. Fhez was snoring loudly on the couch; obviously the ceremony was too much for him. Gold- I nicknamed Magdalene by her last because it suited her better- was painting her nails gold and I had no idea where my mentor was.

I sighed and turned back to the window. People stood on the platform and stared at me grimly. I nodded at them and they nodded back in a silent message of saying 'we understand each other'. I didn't see the tributes board the train and I looked for Burien. I doubted she could have gotten chosen though, she managed to steal 4 of her 5 names from the reaping bowl and got away with it. We stopped at 12, 11 then 2 and finally after hours we were at district 10's station. I was interested in seeing who got picked and hoping that Kinlay might be on the platform to send his tributes off. I might be able to wave goodbye. A girl with long red hair and stunning features stepped onto the train with a hard expression upon her face. Behind her stood a tall, tan boy who looked to be about 17.

I clawed desperately at the window then rushed to the carriage door. It was locked but I continued screaming and bashing it until Fhez was sent to control me. I shrieked more and more, I needed to get to Kinlay. He was in the games, how could he be in the games. He said he would run away to district 6 and find Burien to help hide him. I wailed desperately. We were all going to die and nothing could be done about it. The rest of the trip was a mixture of controlling me or me locking myself somewhere and wrecking everything in my path. I refused to obey the Capital and their stupid rules for their stupid Hunger Games. I would not die in the 59th annual Hunger Games.


	2. The Capital plans

Chapter 2- The Capital plans

I was literally dragged off the train to meet with my stylist. I no longer resisted though, I had a plan. I was lead into a brightly lit room and left there alone for about a minute before my stylist walked into the room. She walked around me, analysing every square inch on my body. I took off my clothes as she analysed me further. She wrote down a few notes on her clipboard before introducing herself as Diamond Gold. She said she was my Escort Magdalena's sister. I noticed that Diamond looked normal though for a Capital citizen. She had pale skin and light blonde hair and wore no makeup. Her clothes were a plain brown colour and bore no accessories.

"You don't look anything like your sister," I mentioned.

"She doesn't look anything like me. She is entirely fake and I am real," Diamond said simply. With a wave of her hand the prep team came pouring in. They were as natural as she was. I hadn't expected to see citizens from the Capital so mellow. They asked me all sorts of intriguing questions but only talked when necessary. I didn't say anything and acted as the shy, scared girl from district 8. They waxed me down until the only hair left was on the top of my head. They brushed my long black hair until there were no longer any tangles left in it. Then they cut it up to my shoulders. I yelped when I looked in the mirror to see what they had done to my hair, they had massacred it. The walls of my mind were slowly crumbling away with every little event that happened that would lead up to my inevitable death. I was slowly edging off the verge of insanity. I could hold it off though, just until the games started.

Diamond came into the room with an armful of assorted luxurious items meant to beautify me which went crashing to the floor the second she saw my hair. I bit my lip and nodded, assuring her that they really did it. Diamond sighed heavily and shooed the prep team away who looked disappointed with themselves. They all had short hair with lots of piercing and I guessed they wanted something similar for me. The last thing I needed was more holes in me to get infected during the games.

Diamond washed my hair thoroughly, attempting to get all the smoke and soot out of it. This time when I looked in the mirror I was surprised but in a pleasant way. My hair was actually a dark brown colour but not raven black like I previously thought. Everyone in district 8 had dark hair with only a few exceptions such as Eli. Eli didn't work in the factories though and didn't get covered in grim which stained everyone else's hair black.

Diamond lead me into another room that had a bed in the middle and a stand for equipment. Other than that, the gigantic room was empty and without contrast. Diamond scrubbed me down with this acidy yet gritty sort of soap that got every ounce of dirt out from the pours under my skin that stung intensely at first and left it feeling tingly afterwards. I hoped that the future tributes would have something to be cleaned with that stung less. I gazed into the mirror for the final time today and saw that I was absolutely spotless. All my previous blemishes were now erased and replaced with smooth, pink tissue paper. I touched myself with disbelief. I could never imagine my hair on my head to be this silky or my body to feel so smooth and hairless everywhere else.

After a short drive to the secure building where I would be staying, my amazement at myself had completely faded. I found myself worrying again about myself and especially about Kinlay. In about an hour was dinner and I would see him again but I knew it was dangerous to show any sign of recognition. I would have to re-befriend him so that I could discuss a plan of attack during the games.

I found Gold waiting for me inside my room. I thought she was meant to be my escort but she hadn't ridden back with me from the prep centre. I soon found out why. "What did you think of my sister," Gold asked a little bit too casually.

"She seems nice, she's very relaxed…"

"She's too relaxed. It's gross. She doesn't even wear any make up nor does her hair. How could she even become a stylist?" Gold carried on, flabbergasted.

"I've seen some of her costumes. They are magnificent," I stated simply. Gold groaned a little before checking her watch and realising what the time was. She hurried me into my room to get changed. She yelled out through closed doors to pick something nice. You would think that because I come from a district that produces textiles that I would be great at this. I actually had no interest in fashion at all. I just made what they told me to make, that was it. I picked out a simple black turtleneck with grey, tight fitting jeans. Before I left my room I quickly slipped on a pair leather boots. Gold sighed (in the same way her sister did when she saw my hair) when she saw my outfit. I was planning to dress humbly and I told her this but she kept commenting on how drab I looked and how I needed to add more flare, colour, or sparkle to it.

We rode down the elevator to the dining room silently. The dim light shone upon Gold's golden outfit making the elevator sparkle with reflected dots everywhere. I was grateful that I knew that not all Capital citizens were as stupid as Gold; Diamond was as laid back as someone from my district.

There was nobody in the dining room when I entered, we were early. I saw Avox's standing around ready to serve us. A white table was full of food that I couldn't even name. However hungry I was, when I went over to pick some out, Gold shot me a death stare and hisses a little. I backed away slowly and took a seat in front of the labelled spot for district 8. A few minutes later Fhez, the other district 8 tribute rocks up and takes his seat next to me. He lands heavily and the whole table shakes. He might make a good ally in the games, if he's into that sort of thing which I was unsure of. I saw the girl, Burien form district 6 come in with a male tribute form her district and nearly gasped. That was why Kinlay couldn't escape, his ally was taken too!

Kinlay arrived last and I duck my head as he comes in so he would know not to show any sign of acknowledgment. Unfortunately, he sits directly across from me so eye contact is unavoidable. The first dish is served promptly of everyone arriving. A small bird covered in a sort of strawberry sauce comes served in a bowl. I was unsure of how to go around eating this in a place like the Capital so I sat and stared at it. Some around me were eating with their hand whereas others ate delicately with their fork. I decided to look at Gold who was staring at Fhez who had shoved the whole thing into his mouth, with disgust. I took a quick guess to say that was not how you ate it. By the time the dinner was over, everyone was so full they could hardly move. The tributes from the really poor districts such as 11 and 12 looked like they were going to be sick with the amount of food they ate. We sat around the table for a bit and discussed how different the Capital was from our own districts.

"In district 12 there's barely enough to go around," a girl named Lily said and her brother Andrew agreed with her.

"Well, district 3 is worse. We spend all day in the factories with almost no payment," a boy names Paul argued.

"Isn't that a career district?" the dark girl form district 11 asked meekly.

"No, you're thinking of district 1 and 2," district 4's female tribute, Jazu informed her.

"And 4!" Essence (what a stupid name) from district 1 cried out.

"Hardly!" Jazu scoffed. District 4 didn't like to think of themselves as a career district in any way.

"Any career district has it easy! Try cutting down wood every day!" Vivsian from district 7 stated.

A whole completion started about whose district was worse. I was the only one who didn't contribute. I needed to play the part correctly if my plan was to work. Fhez ended up flinging food at the district 6 male because he couldn't think of a comeback quick enough to the district 6's insult. I slowly slipped away up to my room while Gold and the other escorts tried to control the situation. I dreaded training the next day where we would all be forced to be around each other.

As I snuggled down into the soft warm bed I thought about how few allied groups there might be this year if the disagreements continued. I closed my eyes and braced myself for whatever nightmares awaited me.

_I was running through the bush, no stumbling through the bush in the 59__th__ Hunger Games. I could hear Kinlay's voice calling to me for help but I couldn't locate him. I cried out for him but it was Fhez who greeted me instead. He gazed down at me evilly and picked me up. I screamed as he hurdled me down a valley. I tumbled downwards, battered and bruised. At the bottom I saw Kinlay lying there. He was knocking on death's door. Blood stained the sand below him and his breaths were short and raggard. He begged me to kill him and he passed me his knife, his best weapon. I slowly bought the knife upwards and aimed for his heart. I wiped the tears away from my eyes and bought the knife down with all my strength…_

I awoke crying bitterly. What would happen if I was faced with the choice of having to kill him? I didn't even think I could kill him mercifully. I got out of bed slowly and got changed. I rode the elevator down the training room that was already filled with equipment. There was less than a week left until I entered the games and I had nothing that could help me except one thing. While nobody was here I decided I could work on my talents and work on other stuff later. I went over to the camouflage station to find an instructor was already there. "You're here early aren't you? It's still another hour until sunrise," he said surprised. I nodded and took a seat and picked up some materials. The instructor was telling me how to paint my body so that the other couldn't see me but soon stopped speaking after he saw what I was doing. I had found some plants that could be easily made into cloth and sewed those together to create a pair of trousers that would conceal me easily in the woods. Paints washed off but clothes last longer. These were also very warm. The instructor looked impressed and left me too it. By the time the others arrived I had made a sleeping bag, a full set of clothes and a backpack. I whispered to the instructor not to tell them about what I did and to hide what I made. He grinned but hid my creations from the others. I noticed that a lot of the other kids were around the age of 12-14 so this Hunger Games shouldn't be hard to win, I hoped.

I joined Fhez at the knife throwing station and quickly learnt that even though his aim is terrible, if he hits you, you _will _die. His short attention span caused him to stop within about ten minutes of doing it and to move on. I was just picking up a knife and about to throw it at the target when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Kinlay politely told me to shift my feet a little to the left and then throw. To my surprise, I got a bullseye. I realised that the room had gone silent and everyone was watching my hit. I could see some of the other tributes whispering to each other eagerly, they didn't know that the only reason it got such a perfect hit was because of Kinlay. Kinlay had moved onto the knot station and paid no attention to me. The others however, quickly surrounded me and fired questions at me. The career districts persisted in having me to be their ally but I simply say I would think about it. I had no intention of joining them though, they were the Capitals pets.

Over at the plan knowledge station there were the tributes from district 12. We didn't have much communication with district 12 because they were on the other side of district 6 and our allies were closer to us. I remember that once we had a secret midnight meeting to discuss running away and maybe tying to start a new civilization in district 13. We knew there was nothing left of it so we could start new. According to the Capital the air was too toxic but that couldn't be the case because the air would have drifted over to district 12. Kinlay fell asleep first after a long day shearing sheep but Burien and I stayed up talking about plans we had. She said that she wanted to start an uprising in district 6 but doubted others would follow.

"We can't influence that many people. We're too young, we're only 13," I had said with dismay. She sighed and we spent the rest of the night talking about wild ideas for a new land.

The girl form district 12, Lily was sorting through a bowl of plants and correctly picking the poisonous ones from the edible ones. I picked out a berry from her non-toxic pile and popped it into my mouth. She turned to me and smiled. I sat next to her and she showed me which ones were ok. She stopped me from eating a bunch of delicious looking nuts which otherwise would have killed me. I wanted her for an ally. She tried to start conversations but I refused the urge to give out long extravagant answers like my outgoing personality usually does. "You don't talk much do you?" Lily said. I shake my head confirming what she said. She grins at me and holds out her hand. "Allies?" she asks. I beamed and shook her hand. I was happy to know that at least one person wouldn't try to kill me in the arena, at least not at first.

Over the next few days I had hid away in stalls that I was unfamiliar with. The career tributes stopped pestering me to become their ally after they soon learnt that my knife throwing was a 'fluke'. Lily and I had been working together at every stall. I think she made me her ally because she felt pity for me more than anything, to her; it looked like I couldn't do anything special.

After the last day of training I stood in the elevator up to my room with Fhez and the other tributes from districts 9-12. We got off at our floor and the others kept going up. A tall, tan woman lounged on the couch, her belly sticking out profoundly over her tight pants. I gasped when I saw my mentor had finally arrived.


	3. The ceremony

Chapter 3- the ceremony

She got up slowly and walked over to me with her hands on her back, supporting her heavily pregnant belly. I wondered if I looked this bad when I was pregnant. I at least I still put effort into my appearance. Cecelia, my mentor had frizzy brown hair and dark bags under her eyes. She yawned and she came over to greet me. She said she needed to sit back down and so we walked, well _she _shuffled, back to the black leather couch. Fhez looked confused and demanded to know who she was. I couldn't believe he was really that stupid. "It's our mentor," _obviously, _I said the last part in my head. Cecelia won the 48th Annual hunger games and this was her 10th year in mentoring. She didn't look like she cared about much except her baby though. "So now that you're here can we discuss a tactic in the games?" I mumbled shyly.

"Now I'm _here!_ Are you kidding me? It's not easy getting over here to potentially save your life when you have a 600 ton baby arriving in about a week. Not that you would know!" she growled. I knew exactly what she was talking about but I didn't say anything, it was actually Fhez who mentioned it. "Actually she does, she has a one year old baby," Fhez says while stuffing his face with some rice and meat he had ordered as room service. I was surprised by how much he could eat; he would starve in the Hunger Games unless he joined a career group.

"Well, it's rather unfortunate of you to be here then. I don't know what I would have done if I had children then I got reaped," Cecelia's tone softened. I thought about how I had gone hysterical but it wasn't because I didn't want to leave my family to be honest, I was just thinking about myself. I didn't even think about how I could have hurt my family because of the way I acted. I prayed that Ali would have been left alone at the very least. I just made a noise of agreement.

"Can we discuss allies now?" I queried, changing the topic.

She looked at me, her face full of concern now she knew what I had to fight for. But I didn't just have to fight for my baby; I had to fight for my family, my friends and for Kinlay.

"Who were you thinking of having," Cecelia asked softly.

I thought carefully about my answers. I couldn't say certain people because if the Capital had other evidence about us meeting then this could be the final puzzle piece to put the big picture together.

"Lily, the girl from district 12," I say meekly.

"Why her?" Cecelia asks confused.

"She's good with plants," I shrugged. Cecelia nods at this and asks me if there's anybody else. I told her I would probably have to be allies with Andrew as well because he was her brother and they were inseparable. At the mention of a brother and a sister going into the same games Cecelia's eyes filled with tears. "It's terrible having to mentor you poor children. I remember my games; they were so vile and disgusting. I still have nightmares about them. Why would somebody wish this misfortune upon children?" Cecelia rubbed her belly protectively.

"It's worse because of their mother's grief if they both die," I whisper. I couldn't imagine what I would do if I lost Ali but imagine if I had another baby and lost them too. The thought was close to unbearable.

Cecelia quickly composes herself remembering that the Capital would be watching and says, "I'll make sure the tributes from district 12 are your allies."

I thanked her and headed off to bed knowing I only had a few more nights here until I would be forced to my death. I lay restlessly underneath the silk sheets thinking about all the ways I could die, how Kinlay could die, how Burien could die and how my family could be next in the Hunger Games. Nightmares of all these events plagued me throughout the night and I woke up with giant bags under my eyes. Gold came rushing into my room carrying on about how everything was so unorganised and how Cecelia had only just got here last night and that was a problem, etc. I flopped back onto the bed and covered my head with a velvet pillow which Gold promptly threw across the room. She huffed before going through today's schedule. She claimed we were already late yet I couldn't even see the sun above the horizon. Today was the individual interviews and the sponsor dinner and show. Basically that meant that they asked us a bunch of questions after we're all dressed up like dolls and shove us out into a carriage to parade around with the Capital citizens oohing and ahhing at us because we're just puppets in their fantasy world. What a fun day to look forward to. This Hunger Games was structured differently to all the others, I wondered why.

Diamond and her prep crew plus another person came bursting through my bedroom door's crowding it more. Diamond introduced me to Sienna, Fhez's stylist before she left to go deal with him. I braced myself for whatever terrible outfit they had planned for me tonight to represent my district and it was as bad as I thought it would be.

"Now don't worry about it. I know it's really tacky but there's a surprise at the end. Press this button when you pass President Snow on your way back ok?" Diamond pressed a black piece of plastic with a button on it into my hands and smiled reassuringly.

The rest of the day was a fast blur of words, high heels and practising how I laughed. When it was finally time to suit up I felt like I weighed a ton. I was both physically and mentally exhausted. I hated the outfit and I was extremely tired. Diamond wrapped the heavy material around me and then twirled it up into the air. The long trail hung loosely in the air, swirling like a mermaid's tail, it didn't help. The prep team filled in my face with assorted colours from a crayon box of makeup. My eyes were circled with black which faded into red and then gold. My lips were painted blood red and made to look thicker as my eyebrows were darkened and formed into a sever shape. My face gave off the illusion that I was starving and angry with the hollow cheeks and bold colours. I actually found myself liking it. My now short, chocolate brown hair was dyed black again and so much gel was put in it, it looked like I had a textured half broken cup on my head.

I was in the waiting area for the interviews and found myself sitting next to Fhez who looked very similar to me. His blonde hair had been dyed black as well and his childish features had been erased with makeup. One could hardly believe he was only 13 before all this but now it was impossible. I grabbed his hand and smiled up at him. He nervously smiled weakly at me but soon wiped the look off his face. "We're enemies once we're in the arena. I already don't want to have to kill you; I just want to show my strength." He kept his eyes straight forward. I understood what he meant. He would have no allies in the arena, just him all alone. He knows he will die but he was never understood by anyone at home, an outcast. This is his escape.

A woman carrying a clipboard called me into my interview through tight, surgically enhanced lips. I went into the room where there was only a camera man, a couch and Caesar Flickerman the new host for the Hunger Games. I sat down on the red couch that matched my dark lips and noticed that Flickerman's hair and makeup was golden. What was with everybody and gold this year? Everyone must just have been super patriotic but I didn't see much of Panem's other colours, red and black. Well, I must have been the most patriotic here.

"And welcome back to the interviews. Here we have Idding Cherrie from district 8. Idding, tell us something about yourself?" Flickerman says with a warm smile.

"I'm 17." I try to say as little words as possible.

"Shy are we?" Flickerman's smile grows. I just duck my head a little.

"Why did you pick to wear Panem's flag tonight, Golden Goose?" I already had a nickname it seemed. I wondered why he had picked _that_ nickname though.

"Well, I didn't really pick it," I mumbled.

Flickerman laughs good heartily, "Of course you didn't, that's what your brilliant stylist is for, and I love the matching makeup." I thanked him.

"Is there anybody special at home that you're impressing?"

I blush deep red at that comment unintentionally. I could feel the audience glued to their screen right now. It had been a while since something like this happened and it would properly be a while again.

"Who is it?" Flickerman pressed. I just shake my head, my hair unmoving. Flickerman shrugs it off claiming jokingly that we would never know. I was surprised by the way he had with people; he could keep a dead conversation flowing with nothing to it. No wonder he was hired for the job. My time was up and Fhez was called in after me. I waited by our golden carriage with district 8 engraved into it. All the other districts had similar carriages. District 9 was next to me wearing tacky corn outfits and I felt sorrier for them then I did myself for what I was wearing. District 7, on my other side was dressed as trees which were only a slight improve meant.

Jazu and Jason from Fishtrict- that was what I nick named district 4 because they specialise in seafood- came over to talk to me. They were dressed in mermaid outfits and held giant tridents proudly. "You're not going to win the games just because you're sucking up to Snow," Jazu snarls. I whisper that it wasn't my fault even though I really wanted to yell at them telling them how much I despised this outfit and what it represented.

"I think we might kill you first," Jason cackles and walks back to his carriage with Jazu. I couldn't really help what I said next. "Nice knowing you Fishtrict," I call out before quickly covering my mouth with both hands. Jazu's eyes blazed with anger at my insult, I didn't think it was that bad but district 4 was known for ridicule about being career's and every game there is at least one person that makes a fish comment. They had it coming though, Fishtrict tributes were cold hearted. Jason raised his hand to strike me and I prepared to defend myself when a figure steps swiftly in front of me dressed in wool and cowskin, blocking the Fishtricts from me. Kinlay shoots a look that says 'what the hell are you doing' but he said, "Let's not kill each other before its time." Jazu and Jason growl a little but retreat. Kinlay glances at me again briefly before heading back to his own carriage. I felt his disappointment in my behaviour right down into stomach. I acted so foolishly, I should have known better. My face remained a blank mask of Capital obedience despite my feelings inside.

Fhez joined me and soon the trumpets were blaring announcing the start of the parade. Fhez and I got into our carriages and waited. I saw Fhez had a plastic button thing in his hand as well. Our flags intertwined together fitting perfectly. It was clever of Diamond and Sienna to do; it wouldn't have been easy either. In the factories we would sometimes have to create special custom outfits for citizens of the Capital and occasionally we would get an order for two that when next to each other, look like they can't be apart; one picture in two outfits essentially. I was deafened by the roar of the crowd as we left the waiting area. I remembered this was only the 5th Hunger Games where they had had this parade. Fhez and I looked at each other and in silent agreement; neither of us smiled or made any recognition of the audience, in fact my head was ducked the majority of the time. Fhez knew he was going to die but he still seemed bothered by the games. For somebody so simple minded, Fhez was hard to understand.

We only had about 100m left until we went back into the waiting area and I saw President Snow up in the stands in his own private box. He looked down at us with haughty contempt and I nearly snarled. Fhez nodded at me and in unison, we pressed the button unsure of what was going to happen. I felt a strange liquid pouring down my back and I swore my outfit was getting lighter. I peered up at the giant screens which were now zoomed in on us and my eyes widened with such surprise. I bit my lip to keep from screaming. Blood poured from the material and big dark letters had begun to appear on the flag. _The blood of your victims_ the words read. Fhez looked as frightened as I was. What would the Capital do to me because of my actions? What would they do to my family? The screens went black and the lights shut off pretty quickly after the words appeared. Fhez and I were seized my peacekeepers and dragged away. Fear was pumping through my veins more than actual blood was. This was one of the highest forms of treachery and I was scared for my life. I was happy about the point it made but terrified. We were thrown into a dark office with hard metal floors. The door slammed shut behind us and I heard a lock click into place. "What did you mean to accomplish by this? None of the other districts saw this, only the Capital and there is no way they'd turn against me." The smell of blood and roses emitted from the figure behind the desk hidden by the shadows.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know I swear…" I babbled.

"Silence." A lit appeared on the desk, luminating President Snow's haunting face. "I know you didn't, I could tell by your terror when you saw what was happening. Tell me though, who did it?"

I didn't want to say it was Diamond although obviously it was. This must have just been a test of obedience and I needed to show I was compliant if I wanted to survive. I could rebel in my own way in the arena. "Diamond." I whispered sadly.

Fhez joined me and said, "Sienna too." He knew what I was doing. Maybe he wasn't as dumb as previously thought.

"Thank you. I trust you will never speak of this again. I'm not usually this generous." Snow said coldly. Both Fhez and I thank him over and over again for his kindness and get to leave with no harm done, to us that is. When we get back to our quarters I find two new stylists but with the same prep teams as before. The prep team's faces are puffy and red from crying, they knew what would happen. I hoped they didn't get punished too. Gold was twitching nervously on the couch with her clipboard broken in half. I went over to comfort her and tell her everything would be ok. "Stay with us ok? Don't go crazy, we need you."

"But everything's falling apart," Gold cried.

I hugged her like I would to one of my little sibling's when they were upset and this seemed to calm her. Tomorrow was the skill test and I couldn't afford another sleepless night and so when everyone else was gone I whispered to Gold if I could have some sleeping pills. Gold looked at me like I was crazy. "Do you have those wretched things in district 8? Their ancient not to mention unhelpful. Just order up a sleeping tea, it works better than any pill."

I went to my room and washed off all my makeup and got rid of all the hair gel. I looked at my hair unhappily once more before leaving the bathroom to strip off my disobedient flag and get into some soft, comfy PJ's. I twist the ring Kinlay gave me before the reaping around my 4th finger on my left hand. I had gotten rid of Kyle's ring of lies a long time ago. I ordered up a sleeping tea before lying under the covers with the mug held securely in both hands. I took a sip and immediately everything started to go fuzzy.

When I woke up I found that my tea had spilt all over the bed sheets. I felt so good after that sleep, it was the best I had had in a long time. As soon as I left the bed for the bathroom an Avox came into the room and stripped my bed of its damp sheets. Kinlay told me once about Avoxs. He said that they were traitors who had their tongues cut off. I gasped and ran out of the bathroom to catch a glimpse of the Avox's face before it left the room with an armful of blankets. Diamond's light blonde hair had been cut into a bog which was dyed bright red. Oh no, the Capital made her into one of their slaves. The look Diamond had on her face was that of pure misery and regret. I collapsed to the floor with my hand over my mouth in utter disbelief. The Capital wasn't even courteous enough to kill her, no; they had to make her suffer. Utter dread filled as I thought how close I may have been to sharing her fate.

Gold burst into the room, with tear sin her eyes. "Diamond's dead. I got the letter," she cried. I was glad that she didn't know the truth; it would have torn her apart. Seeing such torture happen to a loved one would be terrible. I'm sure that f Diamond passed her in the hallway then Gold wouldn't have taken a second glance, Capital citizens didn't make eye contact with Avoxs.

"I'm so sorry," I said with remorse that coated my shaking voice. Gold took one last sniff before she composed herself. She announced that today was the skill test and I was to discuss it with Cecelia before I went into the training room to present it. I met Cecelia in the miniature dining area on our floor. I got straight to business.

"I'm showing them my sewing skills," I proclaimed.

"Sewing skills won't get you sponsors," Cecelia said dismayingly.

"Mine will. I can create a body heat reflecting sleeping bag within an hour from just about anything."

"You don't have an hour."

"I only have 15 minutes and so I will make a camouflage for myself that will blend in entirely with any background." Cecelia looked at me unsurely as I said this. I wasn't too worried about sponsors; I could survive on my own.

When it was time to go down, I found myself in the elevator squished next to Kinlay. It was an awkward 5 minute ride down to the training centre, deep below ground levels. I waited for a few hours until they finally got to district 8. They called me in and I took a deep breath before entering through the doors. The sponsors and the head game maker were all feasting on lavish foods as they sat up in their luxurious box to view my talents. Thankfully, their attention span hadn't fully run out after all the hours of watching others. I headed straight over to the weaving station and found some of my previous creations were still there. I changed the plan slightly to what I originally had. I presented the sleeping back and set of clothes to them. They all leaned forward in their seats to take a closer look as I explained what I did. I was pleased that I know had all their attention, there weren't many who could do something so vital to survive as this. The head game maker asked me to show them me making something. Some vines lay on the ground of the station which I picked up and intertwined them to create a net of sorts. I then got some wood and chiselled it down. When the wood was ready which took about 12 minutes, I attached the net to a hole in the wood by using sap to glue it on. Thankfully this sap was the type that was a strong adhesive. A big rock stood near the station which I picked up and put into the net of the catapult. I aimed the catapult at the weapons station and fired. The game makers watched eagerly as the giant rock smashed into the weapon racks and sent metal flying everywhere. They even clapped before dismissing me.

Back at my room, Cecelia and Gold were giddy with joy as I told them about the game maker's reactions. Fhez returned soon after saying that he had just done some drills with some heavy weapons, nothing special. We all took a seat as the scores begun to show up on the screen. Flickerman accounted that both tributes from district 1 had scored 8's and I found myself growing nervous. The district 2 female scored a massive 10, I wondered what she did. Paul, the 12 year old from district 3 scored a 5 which wasn't too bad considering how young he was. The male tribute from Fishtrict scored a 3 whereas the female got a 6. Gold started to make a list of those who were going to be treats in the arena based on the scores. My friend from district 6, Burien scored a 5. I hoped she would be better in the arena. I didn't want her to be one of the weak ones who died first; then again, I didn't want to kill her either. The district 7 female scored an 11 and we all found ourselves staring at the screen with our mouths gaping open in utter confusion. She was so little and weak, what could she had possibly done to impress the judges so much. When it finally got to us I found myself holding Cecelia's hand nervously. I came first scoring an 11! I could hardly believe it, neither could Cecelia. I jumped around for joy and wouldn't have stopped if it wasn't for Fhez telling me to quieten down for his score. Fhez only scored a 3 which damped the mood quite a bit. He didn't act surprised though. After Fhez, the girl called Katty from district 9's score was announced. She scored a 14 which was previously unheard of in the Hunger Games. If we were amazed at first by the district 7 female's 11 then we were utterly astounded by this score. Gold wrote down Katty's name in massive letters on the threat list. "Can you try to make her my ally?" I asked Cecelia, my eyes still popping out of my head. She said that she would try but didn't know if she could due to the amount of tributes properly begging her to be _their _ally right now. Kinlay was announced next. He must have shown them his amazing way with daggers and yet she only scored a 6. Both the tributes from district 12 scored low.

I yawned, and decided to go to bed. I only had 2 more nights of luxury before I was to enter the arena. I knew I would try to win but at the same time I knew that was impossible, especially when versing Katty with a score of 14.

I woke up in the late afternoon of the opening ceremonies where they would interview us as a group, a new addition to the Games. I felt nauseous thinking about how this time tomorrow either I would be in the arena, or on a hovercraft, dead. I saw my gown for the interviews lying on my bed. Telila, my new stylist had made a long golden dress that consisted on many layers. The sheer material on the top layer reflected the sunlight so that sparkles danced off my face. Leading up from the misty material of the skirt was a tight, yet conservative top made from soft feathers painted gold. Flickerman's voice appeared in my head, _Golden Goose. _Looked like Telila thought I should carry out the nickname. I got changed and Telila and her pep crew came in to do my makeup. Soft, baby pink gloss was painted over my lips and made them look bigger. The outside of my eyes were rounded with gold eyeliner and white was put across the waterline to create the effect of them looking bigger. The final touches of blush were added making my cheeks look as rosy as a young child's. My hair was dyed back my natural brown and curled into light, bouncy swirls. I looked younger in my outfit, more innocent. I thanked Telila for going along with my 'personality' of just being the shy girl. Fhez was made up to look tougher and older but wore a similar golden suit. His however, bore no feathers. We both looked about 15 years old with all the makeup when in reality we were 4 years apart in age.

The drive to the theatre were the interviews were held was short but the navigating inside the building took a long time. We had to pass through several security screenings before they would let us into the waiting area. When we were finally called on stage, I was so nervous I had started sweating horribly. This however, added to the effect that I was a shy, innocent girl. Flickerman welcomed everybody to the show like they had a choice to watch this. The girl form district 1 played the sweet child card, as did the boy. Those from district 2 and 3 played it tough. The Fishtrict tributes acted arrogant yet humorously. When Burien spoke, the crowd would laugh at her brashness as sigh well as her stunning beauty. Vivsian, the district 7 tribute didn't act typically strong like most would from a lumber district. She spoke intelligently and obviously had an education which was more than what most people from district 8 could say. Cyan, the boy from district 7 was much unlike Vivsian. When it got to his turn all he did was stare grimy at the camera and say dangerous things. He spoke about the capital's wrong doings and how one day somebody would stand up against them. I gulped a little at the direction he was going.

When it got to my turn, I mumbled my words and often had to repeat things. "How did you get the idea for your outfit, Golden Goose?" Flickerman winked. I blushed and said it was all my stylist's doing. Flickerman said that he loved how the gold matched his hair and I laughed pleasantly at that. All my practising at laughing right had the crowd awing at me. "And how old are you now?" Flickerman asked.

"17," I smiled.

"I mentioned somebody special in our private interviews. Would you care to elaborate now that we're in private?" he grinned.

"Well, I have my little girl. The only thing of true worth," I stated and regretting saying that straight afterwards. I was afraid the Capital might take that as an insult.

Flickerman took it good heartedly though and said, "You're very young to have a baby. Are you married?"

I took a deep breath but said with confidence, "No. My husband died a few years ago." I imagined the way Kyle would be reacting right now. I could see him growling and calling me nasty things. "I miss you, Kyle. It was only a year but it was nice. You'll never see your baby grow up, ever." I look up at the heavens as I say it genuinely but mean it sarcastically. Kyle would get the message, we're through. There would be no wedding if I returned alive, no him for me. He has no right to Ali and if he dared to touch her I would bring him down whether I was dead or alive. I only hoped that he didn't take his anger for what I did on national television out on my family.

"That's too bad," Flickerman said empathetically. The whole crowd was weepy and I was holding back a massive smile. The Capital citizens were so blissfully ignorant; I would actually like it very much if Kyle was dead. My time was up and they kept moving on. When they got to Kinlay he acted serious and sullen. The audience would fall for this but I knew that he was really a sweet, kind and was relaxed most of the time. It appeared we were both acting as if we were different people form what we really were. Kinlay wore a black suit with no contract in colour, not even his hair. How fitting that he would wear something one would wear to a funeral. The audience applauded us for a long time even after we got off stage and started walking down the thin corridor to where our transportation (courtesy of district 6) would be waiting. I stumbled around in my silly high heels and a hand caught me just as I was about to fall. Kinlay held my hand tightly as we walked down the rest of the stair case. It would remain unseen in the dim light and narrow walkway. We shot each other a quick look of pain, our hearts yearned for each other. I could hardly stand pretending not to know him and being away from him for so long. I would see him tomorrow in the arena though, but for how long?

I was up all night thinking about this terrible situation. There was only ever one victor and who would it be? If it wasn't me I wanted it to be Kinlay and if not Kinlay then Burien. I couldn't imagine living without Kinlay though; I would do anything for him. He could move on without me but I doubted I could without him. I ended up ordering a sleeping tea due to insomnia. I only had a few hours until I had to get up again but some sleep was better than nothing.


	4. Opening the games

Chapter 4

A cold metal room now surrounded me. I had woken up this morning and gotten on a hovercraft to get here. I had gotten changed into a brightly coloured jumpsuit, warm jacket and thick boots and smiled. It mattered not if the terrain didn't match the outfit, I could make a camouflage in a snap. I had been allowed to take my plain golden ring into the arena as a token from my district. I found that quite ironic considering it wasn't even from district 8 but district 10. Gold had hugged me goodbye but it was Cecelia that burst into tears. I knew she would be a great mother to her little one; she was so loving. She cared about whether I lived or died in that awful arena enough to make her cry. I now sat on a hard bench waiting to be called into the glass elevator to be lifted up. My stylist Telila sat with me talking about pointless conversations. She spoke most of the time and it was comforting in a way to hear her mindless babble. In the last few minutes I had of safety she held my hand tightly and even looked sorry for me. Through her brightly coloured makeup and hair and other shallow indulgences, there may have been a person.

We got the call and so I stepped into the tube and watched it seal over, trapping me from the rest of the world. I pressed my hands against it and gazed at Telila, pity filling my eyes. She had to turn away but I understood. I took a deep breath and turned the other way too and waited for the lift to start. It was close to a quarter of an hour before it started rising. I wondered what was taking it so long. Worry had begun filling me. The first thing I noticed in the arena was that the boy from district 7 was not on his plate. What had the capital done to him? I shook my head, trying to forget about it. The countdown had begun and I didn't have long until I would be fair game. I gasped at the arena around me. Everything was made from gold. The ground, the sky, even the foliage was made from gold. The only thing that wasn't gold was the leaves on the trees and I wondered how much this cost the Capital. I had no idea how I would survive this. I couldn't make a disguise out of metal, I'm no blacksmith. My mouth made an O shape as I realised now why Flickerman was wearing gold this year. I'm sure Magdalena would be very pleased with this year's Hunger Games.

I looked over at Lily, on the district 12 plate and she nodded at me. I knew I had two allies now, Lily and he brother were a package deal. Lily then nodded at Katty who looked at me suspiciously but then agreed. I couldn't believe this; I already had the best player on my team. I grinned to myself. 10 seconds to go. I suddenly remembered Kinlay.

Time was up. We all launched off the plates and ran straight for the cornucopia. The gold reflection burned my eyes but I kept running. I called out for Kinlay who I soon found to be right beside me. I heard laughter in his voice as he said that I could hardly expect that he would leave me. My vision cleared as a golden cloud covered the brilliant sunlight. The female from district 11 came roaring at me. I yelped a little as her fist connected with my shoulder. My hands quickly shot up defensively and grabbed her around the neck. I swiftly snapped it as I threw her onto the hard metallic ground. Kinlay had the male tribute from district 11 in a head lock. I saw the tribute raise his free hand behind Kinlay's back. I saw he had a knife in his hand. I lunged forward and ripped the knife form his hands. I passed it to Kinlay who promptly slit his throat. I didn't get how a 13 and 14 year old could think they could survive attacking the Cornucopia on the first day. Kinlay and I kept sprinting towards the gleaming horn and we saw our other allies take out multiple people. Katty had just strangled the male tribute from her district without batting an eyelid. Lily and her brother, Andrew had Burien pinned down. Lily held a big golden rock above her head, threating to bring it upon Burien's head. I quickly bolted in their direction. "No! Don't kill her, she's with me!" I shouted at them, running harder. In the split second they looked Burien had thrown them off her and decapitated Andrew. "Burien, what are you doing. I said don't kill them!" I roared.

"You said to not kill her. Is this kid a her?" Burien said grimly pointing down to Andrew's headless body which now spilled blood everywhere.

"Seriously, what the hell. They were a package deal. You should have known that!" I groaned. Little 12 year old Lily was hysterical. She was pulling out her hair in distress.

"What's her problem?" Burien asked.

"You just killed her brother in front of her eyes!" I was slightly disgusted at Burien's lack of empathy. Just because she was all strong on the outside didn't mean she had to be so tough inside. I gently scooped up crying Lily who was struggling against me. She bit my arm multiple times trying to get back to her brother but I didn't let her go. It wasn't safe for her. We kept going to the Cornucopia which was a fair distance away than it normally is. I kept throwing my head behind me to check to see if the careers were coming. Surprisingly, for the first time in Hunger Game history, they didn't. "I guess we're the career's this Hunger Games," I muttered.

"Huh?" asks Kinlay.

I released I was talking to myself and quickly say, "Oh, nothing. Don't worry."

At the Cornucopia we scouted around to check that no one was waiting for us, nobody was. Inside the giant horn, it was much cooler. The temperature must have dropped by about 10 degrees. It took a while for my eyes to get used to the darkness but when they did I saw a whole treasure trove of things. In an arena where everything was gold, anything else is basically sacred. I didn't know how the others could survive without this, especially if there really was nothing but gold. This arena really must be Magdalena's heaven. I wondered if she had any input on this. All of us started to paw through all the marvellous items surrounding us. There was many crates full to the brim with food. I dug out a delicious looking fruit and bought it to my mouth when a hand slapped it away from me. Lily, in all her distress had managed to recognise the food and label it as deadly. She told us she would sort through the foods and pick out the edible ones for us. I asked her if she was ok and she just replied that she knew both her and her brother couldn't make it out alive, she didn't want to see her brother killed this way though. I gave her a long hug before leaving her to her work. There was nothing but food here. We all looked around trying to find something else when Katty called out to us. We all rushed over to see Katty had found a button. Everyone but me sighed in disappointment. "What does it do?" I asked. Katty shrugged and pushed it. To our amazement a little door appeared below us. We looked at each other but it was me who opened it. I went down first and found that there was a well lit room underneath. Our mouths gaped open at the scene. Something like this had never happened at the Hunger Games before. There were multiple levels on the Cornucopia.

The floor of this level wasn't gold, it was dirt. I dug my hands into the damp soil and smiled. We definitely had the advantage this hunger games. This room was filled with all sorts of weapons. Kinlay took a variety of swords and put them in vest that he found full of places to put the weapons. Burien grinned as she took hold of a giant hammer, she'd be good with one considering she came from district 6 where she'd have to be making transportation all the time. Katty gathers together an arsenal of different weapons; I didn't doubt she could kill any one of us with any of those in a second if she wanted to. Lily didn't take anything. She was still traumatised from her brother being killed and probably couldn't bring herself to think that maybe she'd kill somebody. I picked up something that I had never seen before in an arena, there seemed to be a lot of radically new things this year. I slipped the gun into my warm jacket before searching around for water. I couldn't find any and Katty couldn't find another button of sorts. "There's water under ground," Kinlay said. We all turned to listen to him. "The dirt's wet, and obviously rainwater can't get here." We all began digging frantically. Sure enough, soon we found a large supply of water. We have no water bottles though so we know we must return here every few hours. We all headed up to the top floor just in time to see the sun go down. We started late today, later than usual. The capital citizens were pampered to the fact that they dictated if the Games started hours later than usual because they were too lazy to get out of bed to see us off to our doom at lunch time. In district 8, I get up every day not long after the sun rises.

We would have made a campfire but there was no real wood around. The only heat we had was from our clothing. Lily bought us over a bunch of the edible food and we all sat in a circle to eat. The anthem blares out across the arena and we get to see those who have been killed today. We hadn't heard the cannon's fire. I guessed we were too preoccupied with the second level to pay attention. Essence, from district 1 was dead. Both the faces from district 5 showed up, Cairo and Hanna. That meant that 3 from the careers, the 2 from the Fishtrict and those from 3 were still alive. The next was Cyan from district 7 (who I presumed the capital killed first. I guessed they didn't show that he was not on his plate at the begging) and then it was Winna from district 9 (I almost laughed at his name, what a cruel joke). Fhez must still be alive; I wondered how he was going. Both of the tributes from 11 showed up, killed by Kinlay and I. The last picture was Andrew's. I could hear Lily weeping softly when he showed up. Her tough act before abut knowing this would happen was just that, an act. I went over to where she was sitting and joined her. She put her head in my lap and I began to stroke her soft dark hair. She was only 12, so innocent. There were so many young ones in the game this year. Fhez, Burien, the Fishtricts and I were the oldest. Only 5 of the 24 of us were over 14.

The anthem played again before we were plunged into darkness. Burien offered to stay up and be on guard which was fine by the rest of us. I snuggled up to Kinlay who had headed towards the back of the Cornucopia. He said it was the safest place to be while still being able to help the others quickly if raided. "I finally get to touch you now," he whispered to me. We had never had any physical contact back in the districts because of that wretched fence separating us. We held onto me the whole night. I thought about what the Capital might think, they might be suspicious but I didn't care. I knew I wouldn't get out of this alive anyway, I wouldn't risk being cautious with Kinlay when this is the only moment we could really be together.

"_Welcome back to the 59__th__ Annual Hunger games!" Ceaser Flickerman cried to the audience who responded with a giant wave of applause. It was 9pm and by now most of the residents should still be at home watching their televisions before a night out. Every eye in the Capital would be tuned to this channel. It was time for the recap of what had happened so far. Not much admittedly but this year the game makers had a big surprise that would please every Capital citizen tremendously. After Flickerman introduced everybody and made a few humorous jokes he got down to business. The screen behind him showed clips of what had happened so far. The tributes where rising up on their plates. There was a close up of every one of them except the boy from district 7. There were expressions of fear, aggression and determination everywhere. Then they were running. The whole nation was left flabbergasted when it was the careers that fled for the golden forest. For every kill there was a slow motion moment and everyone was cheering for their favourite competitor. The Capital's favourite overall this year was 12 year old Katty from district 9. Maybe for the first time ever, a 12 year old would win._

_The group that made it to the Cornucopia were all allies and discovered the second level easily. This year's group were smart or so Flickerman though. That opinion changed when he saw the female tribute from district 8 sleeping next to the male from district 10. It was very suspicious considering they shouldn't know each other. Backstage there had been a big debate about it and President Snow had gotten involved. He concluded that it didn't matter. They would both die in the arena and if any questions were asked about their relationship then they shall be presented as traitors and their deaths would be their punishment. _

_When the recap finished with the national anthem then the faces of the dead showed up. For every face there was a massive cry of joy from those who were still winning their bets on who would win this year. Flickerman was secretly cheering on his own favourite; the Golden Goose. He hoped she'd pick up what he meant in the interview and he could see she did on her plate at the beginning. She was still alive and Flickerman thought she had potential, even against someone as deadly as Katty._

_It was time for the big announcement that Flickerman had been dying to tell everyone since the tributes were picked. "All you Capital citizen are always wanting more and more excitement in every game right?" All the audience roars in agreement at this. "Well the Capital had arranged the biggest surprise for you yet and I think you'll love it." Flickerman waited for utter silence before continuing. _

_An alarm sounded filling the whole room and beyond. This screening was now compulsory for everyone in Panem. Flickerman entertained the audience for a few more minutes while the rest of the nation turned their attention to his show. When he was finally ready he waited again until the audience was silent. Then with a big breathe he said, "This year in the Hunger Games… the citizens of the Capital… as a reward for being their gorgeous selves… are allowed to vote on… every day's weather and season… IN THE ARENA!" The whole audience went berserk. People were bursting out of their seats and screaming with joy. Such a privileged had never been bestowed upon them. Flickerman bought up tomorrow's options on the screen behind him. The audience went giddy with delight and immediately started voting._

I woke up before the others and turned around to kiss Kinlay's forehead before relieving Burien of her duties. She looked like she could hardly stay awake another second. In fact she fell asleep in her guard position the instant I said she could have a rest.

While I waited for the others to get up I created a plan for the day ahead. 8 of the 24 tributes were dead, that's not that many for the first day. We had to get the others before they got us. My thoughts were interrupted when little Lily came up to me with an apple in her hand which she offered. I gladly took a bite of the crunchy, delicious green fruit. Lily sat with me in silence as the sun broke over the horizon streaking the sky with gold that matched everything else. In the east breaking the sun beams was a thick metal forest. It seemed to go on forever. I could see no means of animal or plant life within it.

The others awoke slowly but I hurried them up. I could feel the sun beating down upon us already; it was going to be hot today. I gathered everyone around in a circle while they ate a hearty breakfast of bread rolls they found as well as dried meats and various vegetables and fruits. I told everyone that we had to go out today to find the others and hunt them out; if we didn't do so on our own terms then the game makers would do it on their own. I knew the others didn't want to play by their rules any more than they already had to. Everyone had gathered their equipment, including a very tired Burien and e had started to leave when Lily piped up. "What about if somebody raids us?" She was right. I didn't even think about that, nobody did. We seemed too invincible we forgot. Before long we had moved all the good food down stairs and left all the bad stuff on the top level. If anybody came they would eat the poisonous food and hopefully not discover the downstairs room. For extra precaution we moved a pile of crates on top of the entranceway so even if opened, the intruders will not find out about the underground area. We set out with weapons in hand, straight into the tall golden forest. My loaded gun was well concealed in my jacket and I had taken a long spear for a cover up weapon. I could use a spear quite well though; it was just like a giant needle essentially.

The forest surrounding us was unchanging. Every tree looked the same in width, height and shape. If it wasn't for Lily dropping bits of deadly fruit behind us then we would have been lost very quickly. We trekked through the flat land easily for hours and still were nowhere near the edge of the arena. The price of this arena really must have been high. I worried for the district's taxes that would have to pay for this. The sun was rising in the sky with a fierce burn. I was the only person who ought there jacket along and that was only to conceal the gun. I now held that loosely in my hand and dragged it along. It wouldn't be long before the game makers got bored of this and made something happen to bring us to them. I was startled when the boom of a cannon filled the arena. I reconsidered my last thought, if that death was exciting enough then maybe something wouldn't happen. My thirst grew more and more and I suggested going back. The others agreed and we turned around and started to follow the trail of food. It suddenly cut of about 20 meters along. I scrambled around looking for the rest of it but found nothing. Shit. The game makers had done something after all. It couldn't be tributes, we would find them groaning in pain if they ate any of it. We tried walking west because we came out east but no matter how long we walked we didn't get anywhere.

Soon the sun began to set and night was nearly upon us and we all were exhausted. I was about to suggest that we give up for now and try again tomorrow when I heard the sound of rushing water. The others heard it to. I didn't think it was possible in a place of gold. We all ran as fast as we could towards the sound. I could hardly get there quick enough. I could see it glinting gold in the sun's rays and my pace sped up. When I got to the lake I was just about to shove my head in for a big drink when I realised it wasn't the sun's last rays making the river gold. It was actually liquid gold. I groaned and fell against the river bank in defeat. The others were just as disappointed as I was. What a cruel trick, how evil could they be?

I wanted to sleep so badly. I had been walking all day and I was so tired. I was so mentally exhausted that my mind was wide awake preventing my body from resting. The anthem soon played and the sky lit up brightly. There was only one face shown tonight, the boy naked Jake from district 6, Burien's district. Everyone around me was snoring softly, they hadn't stayed awake to see Jake's picture. I was glad I was awake regardless of having to see exactly who died. Somebody had to be on guard. Unfortunately, I felt like I couldn't move to defend anyone if necessary. I lay there staring up at the sparkling night sky for a long time. The only thing that interrupted me was the heavy footsteps of somebody coming towards us.

I bolted upright in a flash, it seemed I could move if I had to after all. My head snapped in the direction where the careless treader appeared. Jason, the Fishtrict tribute moaned when he saw the lake. My shook his fist angrily and swore loudly. He hadn't even noticed us. I shook Kinlay roughly. He moved a little but didn't wake up. I grabbed his eyelids and opened them hoping this would arouse him from his slumber but that didn't work either. I kicked various others around me discreetly but they were too fast asleep. I didn't want to be the one to have to kill him; I didn't want to kill anymore. I looked at Kinlay again. He looked so innocent in his sleep. He would protect me, I had to protect him. I slowly got up, spear in hand and snuck around behind him. Jason stood near the lake on his knees. He was weeping. I bit my lip; I didn't think I could do this. I lowered my spear. In that moment of hesitation Jason spun around with a grin on his mouth. A sharp pain emanated from the side of my face as I realised Jason had hit me squarely. I searched around for my gun and remembered it was in my jacket. I reached out for my spear again when Jason swiftly put his foot down on it. I couldn't get it form under his weight. Jason kicked my arm out of the way roughly and took control of the spear for himself. It was aimed at my heart with one of his giant hands while the other held me down. I used my free legs to kick him. He stumbled backwards and I went straight towards his stomach. My head hit his body at a bad angle and my neck cracked. It wasn't broken or anything but it hurt enough that I was dazed for a few moments. Jason was winded and nearing the edge of the liquid gold water. This was my final chance. I jumped up and yanked the spear out of his hands. With all my might, I kicked Jason into the water. He spluttered around, choking on the gold. I held him under the water event though his hands shot up furiously trying to claw my arms holding him under. I kept them steady until there was no more struggling. He floated away, encased in gold.

_How ironic, a Fishtrict's ending would be by him drowning_. What a horrible thing of me to say about somebody I just killed, I was surprised by myself. The gold on my hands slipped away as quickly as water would and I was left with normal human skin. I wiped my eyes and decided if I wanted any chance at this I would have to be tougher. The spear lay on the side of the river. I gathered it and went back to the others. I could have killed them all then if I wanted to, they were fast asleep. I really couldn't have though. Burien and Kinlay could never die at my hands. That would be unforgivable. The only two I could really kill would be Katty or Lily. But how could I murder 12 year olds in their sleep, even Katty who I'm not particularly fond of. I sighed and sat down in the middle of everyone. The cannon bomb shook the ground. Jason must still have had some fight left in him when I let him go into the clutches of the golden current. Before I knew it, the sun was rising again as were dark ominous clouds.


End file.
